


To Reap What You Sow

by TheArtArmature



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Altean Lance (Voltron), Galra Keith (Voltron), Garla Keith (Voltron), Gen, M/M, Multi
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2016-08-24
Updated: 2016-09-11
Packaged: 2018-08-10 16:53:49
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 8,770
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7853308
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/TheArtArmature/pseuds/TheArtArmature
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>The Alteans and Galra used to be allies, until the rise of Zarkon and his conquest for Universal domination. When a descendant of refugee Alteans, and the genius pilot of the Galra’s Military Academy end up becoming Paladins of Voltron, it will take more than just team exercises to get this team to work together. Will they be able to form Voltron and save the universe, or will their pasts keep them from moving into the future?</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Prologue

**Author's Note:**

> This has been in my head for such a long time...anyways here's the Altean!Lance and Garla!Keith AUs mixed into one big AU! Let's have fun, shall we?

“Come on Lance, you can do it. Focus.”

A young Lance blinked a few times, gripping his hands into fists as he closed his eyes, focusing on his mother’s words. He groaned to himself, feeling the power inside of him surge. Surging with some trouble, but surging. His mother watched in anticipation as she watched his features change. His sharp altean ears shaped down, forming themselves into the shape of those of a human, his distinctive blue markings disappearing beneath his skin. It was done.

“Great job, Lance!” His mother praised, smiling as she watched her child walk over to the nearest mirror to inspect himself. He felt his ears, how smooth and round they were now. He moved his hands over his cheeks, feeling odd at the missing markings he have had since birth.

“I don’t like it.” Lance murmured, looking up at his mother. “I don’t look like myself.”

“I know.” His mother cooed, rubbing his head gently before moving her hands to rub his cheeks. “But it’s for your own safety. It’s easier than to cover your markings with make-up and your ears with hats, no less than safer as well.” She insisted.

“Why are we different? What’s so bad about being different? I don’t get it.” Lance insisted, crossing his arms frustrated. For years every time he went out, regardless the weather and the occasion, his parents had been so careful with him and all of his siblings. A daily regimen of covering the markings with matching skin tone, their ears with either long hair or hats or headphones. He didn’t see the reason to hide something that was part of who they were, of how they were born.

“Oh Lance.” His mother picked him up in her arms, setting him on her lap as she rubbed his head. Lance allowed himself to rest his head against his mother’s chest, hearing her heart beat in a steady rhythm as she comforted him with soft strokes of his hair. “Trust me, querido. One day you’ll understand.” She assured, leaving a kiss on Lance’s forehead.

…

“Don’t play with your food, Keith.”

A young, Galra blooded Keith sat on the dinner table, poking some of his dinner with a spork. It wasn’t uncommon for kids his age to be more interested in sweets than an actual healthy dinner. Little Keith was no different.

“It jiggles.” Keith giggled, poking his food once more.

“I know it does. But if you don’t eat it now it will get cold.” His father said, taking a bite out of his own plate. Keith eventually did stop playing with his food, beginning to take in spoonfuls of the questionably delicious alien food.

“Madnah said that it comes from Bargath poo!” Keith said giggling.

“Well obviously Madnah has never to a Bargath farm before.” His father corrected, amused at the rumors that kids these days would come up with, especially of their food. “Which reminds me, how was your day at the academy today?”

“It was good.” Keith said, eating up some more food. “We learned about the ship models and what they’re currently used for. It was so cool! I want to be like those pilots!” Keith said, a special gleam in his eyes.

“Surely if you study hard enough you’ll get to become a great pilot, Keith.” His father assured. Keith smiled, before his mind darted off to a whole other topic.

“Karva’s servant came to pick him up today! He was so big! He had four arms, dad!” Keith began. “He could pick us all up into the air with no problem! But then Karva said he could make him do whatever, and he did! He had him eat dirt, it was so icky-!”

“Keith.” His father interrupted, his sudden change in tone turning into a more serious one. “You shouldn’t think that such attitude towards another living being is good, or fun. It is bad.”

“But,” Keith began. “Karva said he was a servant, so it didn’t matter-”

“It does matter.” His father insisted, turning to face him. “He is still a living being, who can speak, think, and feel. Karva is being a bad example for treating him like that, even if it is a servant.”

Keith paused, looking down as he thought of his father’s words. They seemed to confuse him at first, but then settle down as he began to look a bit guilty. “Oh.” Keith said. Another thought, and like that he looked up at his father once more. “But dad, if that’s true…why are we allowed to have servants?” Keith asked, causing his father to pause on his dinner all together. “If they’re people, then why are allowed to have them as servants and slaves? Then wouldn’t that mean that we’re the bad guys?” Keith asked confused, his thoughts running around trying to find a place to fit.

His father opened his mouth to speak, but then paused, thinking a bit more before shaking his head. “Don’t think too much about it, Keith. Just ignore it, if all.”

“…but-”

“No buts.”

“…ok.” Keith lowered his head, and finished his food in silence. “I’m done.” Keith said as he stood up from his seat, picking up his plate and glass before heading to the kitchen.

“Keith.” His father said. Keith paused, turning to look at him.

“Yes dad?”

“I’ll…explain it to you one day.” He said, a sad tone in his voice. “…one day you’ll understand.”

Keith blinked a few times, analyzing his father’s words before nodding, and just like that, he walked to the kitchen, and resuming a normal day as the discussion tried to hide itself into the back of his mind.

_“One day you’ll understand.”_


	2. To Understand

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The seeds are set. I wonder what they shall sow?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I know I'm not a good storyteller but hopefully I'll be able to give this fic some justice.

It had been little over twenty-four hours since he and his friends saw the legendary Takashi Shirogane fall from the sky in an alien spaceship, only to then find a strange blue lion, which led them across the universe to a whole new world to a place known as the Castle of Lions. And now there he was, looking down at the beautiful alien woman in his arms as he had caught her from falling out of her sleeping pod, things only getting even more complicated than before. Yet as always, Lance was as smooth as butter with the situation. Or at least tried to be.

“Who are you? Where am I?” The young woman spoke.

“I'm Lance. And you're right here in my arms.” Lance responded, smiling at her. However, she did not seem amused. Instead she looked rather…confused.

“Your ears.”

“...Yeah?”

“They're hideous. What's wrong with them?”

Lance’s jaw dropped a little bit. How rude?! “Nothing's wrong with them! They heard exactly what you said about them!” Before he could complain more, the young lady had easily spun his arm and pinned him down to his knee, bending his arm against his back.

“Who are you? Where is King Alfor? What are you doing in my castle?!”

Well damn. He didn’t expect that. “A giant blue lion brought us here!!! That's all we know!!!”

And so the situation escalated. The young lady revealed herself to be Allura, Princess of Altea, and her companion to be Coran, a royal advisor. Within a few minutes they had then discovered that; she had been asleep for ten thousand years, that Zarkon, the one responsible for the destruction of her home world and the death of her people and many others was the common enemy, and that they were now the new paladins of Voltron, among other details. Lots of stuff, so little time. It began to cause a headache. But he wasn’t done yet, his eyes refusing to leave the sight of Allura and Coran since the moment they had appeared. He inspected them, eyeing their ears and markings while he moved his hands up his face. It didn’t go unnoticed, especially by his best friend.

“You saw it too?” Hunk whispered, getting the attention of his childhood friend.

“They…they’re the same.” Lance whispered, his voice trailing with disbelief. He didn’t want to believe what his eyes were seeing. “But it can’t be.”

“Well, we are in a whole other world across the universe with mechanical lions and aliens…just saying that this shouldn’t be THAT odd.” Hunk said, trying to sound cheerful to bring any peace to Lance’s mind.

“But it just so happened that I ended up here. With them?”

“Well, you heard Allura. The lion chose you so…maybe it’s destiny.”

Lance chuckled. “Since when did you become a believer in the whole destiny thing?” Hunk simply smiled, giving Lance and reassuring pat on his shoulder.

“You don’t have to ask if you don’t want to. You can remain-“

“No, I…I really want to know. I have to.” Lance convinced himself. He had to. For years his mother’s words echoed across his mind.

_“Someday you’ll understand.”_

Maybe today was that day. For years hiding his true self, his true appearance that only his family and Hunk knew about. The possible answers were right in front of him, and it would make him a damn fool to let it slip.

“Um, princess, Coran?” Lance walked up, casually entering the conversation. “You said that you’re…alteans, right? Is there a way that maybe…possibly your species could have existed in other planets besides Altea?” The question was…odd, but not strange, as it sounded to be asked out of curiosity of a new species.

“Well, we Alteans are known as a chameleon like species, able to adapt and morph our bodies to blend in with local species, making us great diplomats and explorers…it wouldn’t surprise me that Alteans could be found around the universe still. It’s a big place, after all, and migrations were fairly common.” Coran explained. The answer gave Lance a bit of hope.

“Do you think they could have reached as far as Earth?” Lance asked, now being a bit more specific.

“Earth?” Allura asked. Coran and Allura looked at each other, and then turned their attention to the starmap projection, Coran quickly finding the location of Earth. “It’s…very, very far off from Altea. But I wouldn’t put it past me that some Alteans could have reached that far, if they were looking for a new home.” She paused, her eyes turning to Lance curiously. “Why do you ask? You sound nervous.”

Oh if only she knew. Lance felt his heart about to leap out of his chest and up his throat.

“Well,” Lance said as he chukled a bit nervously. “I may or may not…I mean, ever since I was little I…” It was harder to explain it than what he thought. After a few seconds of fumbling over words, he sighed. “It’s better to just show you.” Lance said.

This caught the eye of everyone, including Pidge and Shiro. Lance took a deep breath, concentrating. He had gotten used to hide within his human appearance, it began to field weird to allow himself to look ‘normal’ again. Within moments he began to change, not drastically, yet enough for everyone to notice. His ears became sharpened, and under his eyes blue markings emerged from his skin. It was such a simple change that meant a world of difference, to a point of it being silly. The gasps from Coran and Allura were enough for Lance to jump, his eyes opening as he looked around the room. Coran and Allura were looking at him as if they had seen a ghost. Shiro didn’t know what to say, and Pidge looked like she had been hit with a brick.

“WHAAAAT?!” Pidge asked, running up to Lance. “You were an alien all along?! And you didn’t tell me?!”

“H-Hey! Have you any idea what they would do to me at the Garrison? I would be strapped on a table like a frog!” Lance responded, stomping his foot down.

“You,” Allura’s voice brought them back. She sounded at the verge of tears. “You’re Altean too.” She said, smiling softly. “So there are others out there after all.” The hope in her voice sounded almost angelic. But anyone would feel the same if they realized their species, whom they thought had gone extinct, still existed somewhere out there.

“A whole family.” Lance smiled cheerfully.

“Wait does this mean Hunk knew?” Pidge asked.

“Yeah. He showed me once when we were kids but we kept it secret.” Hunk admitted.

“No fair, you could have told me!” Pidge complained a bit. Your friend was an alien all along? Who wouldn’t be annoyed.

“Calm down, Pidge.” Shiro said with a small chuckle, rubbing the back of his head. After everything he had seen, nothing seemed to be a surprise anymore. A whistle brought them all back to their senses, their eyes landing on Coran.

“Well, with all of this excitement and revelations, we must not forget our main objective, currently.” Coran said as he cleared his throat, the images of the lions appearing before them. “We must gather all of the lions, before Zarkon realizes that new paladins have arrived.”

…

**“WARNING! WARNING! METEORITE BELT AHEAD!”**

The voice of the ship’s computer boomed across the small fighter ship’s control room. Keith didn’t worry, swiftly adjusting the controls before him to prepare for the upcoming obstacle.

“Keith Kogane to base. Target planet has been located. Engaging entrance in ten.” Keith spoke, as of something out of routine. He gently cracked his neck, gripping the controls tightly as a slight smirk appeared on his face, watching down the countdown. “Here we go.”

Keith pushed forward, the ship advancing into the meteorite belt. With swift maneuvers and quick thinking, he drove across the belt, in between meteorites with relative ease, missing a few by inches at a time. Movements so fluid one could ask Keith to do this blindfolded, and he would have most likely aced it regardless. He saw the biggest meteorite come into view, right in his path. It was too big, too wide. So instead of attempting to avoid it in either side, with a confident smile, he pushed forward, flying right into the large meteorite, into one of its many naturally made caverns. They were barely large enough for his ship to fit, the inside like a labyrinth that could lead to dead ends and wrong turns. Yet Keith kept going forward, trusting on gut instinct alone. In a matter of seconds, he was almost through, only to find a dead end. That didn’t stop him, moving his thumbs above the buttons on his control sticks.

“Boom.” Keith said with a smile, pressing the red button to unleash a couple of beams from his ship, causing them to blow up the dead end into pieces. Smoke and dirt rose into the air around the newly made exit, and out of it flew Keith, exiting the meteorite and the belt as a whole, the target in plain sight ahead. It was a success. Just as suddenly as he had finished his stunt, the screen before him went black, the ship shutting down and the lights above him turning on.

**“SIMULATION COMPLETED.”** A familiar robotic voice announced, the door behind him opening up. Keith stood up and excited the flight simulator to a thunderous applause.

“Now THAT is what I’m talking about!” A Galra spoke, a professor at that, wearing a pristine military styled uniform without the bulk of the armor. Besides him inside the hall were dozens of other Garla, all around similar ages of 16 to 19, wearing black and red uniforms that matched Keith’s own. Keith shuffled his feet as he shook the instructor’s hand, who shook it back enthusiastically before turning to the rest of the students. “Can you tell me any flaws that you saw on Keith’s flight simulation?”

Silence.

“Exactly!” The instructor piped up, gently patting Keith on the back. “His reaction time was flawless, and his instincts and planning in order to improvise in an unexpected situation showed the efficiency needed to become a pilot. He did not panic, nor wasted any time waiting for response on central command. Instead he trusted his instincts, and managed to pull through without a scratch. You must all remember that as a pilot, there are no second chances. The choices you make must be quick and proficient if you hope to come out alive from the battlefield.” The instructor spoke, the students nodding and listening with much attention. “Amazing job today, Keith. Thank you for giving us an example of your simulation. You are dismissed.” The instructor said, gently ruffling Keith’s hair. Keith only nodded softly.

“Thank you, sir.” With that, he walked away, waving past his classmates as whispers began to run amok, even after the class had resumed with others beginning to take their turns in the simulator. The whispers and rumors he heard across the halls, every day here and there, were always the same.

“It’s Thace’s son!”

“The prodigy?!”

“He’s so young!”

Since small he had always wanted to be a pilot, something his father encouraged him as much as Keith was willing. However, as he entered into the Pilot program of the Military Academy, it was quickly obvious that he was different. Not only was he brilliant in mind, but when it came to simulations and hands on practice, he was a master with no restrictions. Soon, he began to advance through the ranks quicker than anyone had done before. Student Pilot, Cargo Pilot, Fighter Pilot, and now, Military Pilot, just a few credits away from being formally certificated as a full fleshed pilot. He was a rising star, and yet it didn’t satisfy him as he thought it would. Yes, he wanted to be a pilot. He desired it and yet…something felt…off. As if he was missing something. In those moments his father’s words echoed across his head.

_“One day you’ll understand.”_

Yes, but understand what?

“Keith!”

Keith paused, turning to see a superior walking towards him. “Good thing I found you! One of our students from the rotation groups got sick with the Gobble-Worm Flu. I was wondering if you would like to take his place.”

“Where was he going to rotate?”

“Vehicle Command E45. You know, the one with the Red Lion thing” The Garla said cheerfully as he winked at him. “I thought that you might want to take a chance to take another look at the place. I know you like to see that lion so...”

“Oh.” Keith smiled, turning to face him. “I would love to! Are they heading out right now?”

“Yeah. Gate G3.” The Garla spoke, watching Keith shift his direction to head out. “Should I tell your dad?”

“Yes please, thank you!” With that, Keith disappeared within the hallways. The Garla simply shook his head.

“What an odd kid.”

...

“Very good, paladins! You have gathered your lions rather quickly.” Coran said cheerfully. “Now all we are missing is the Red Lion. Good news, we have managed to locate it. Bad news…it’s currently inside an enemy ship.” Coran explained as he showed them the coordinates.

“Um, yeah, about that,” Lance began. “I don’t know if you have noticed, but there’s only four of us, and we’re missing a paladin.”

“Yes, you are correct. But we cannot allow them to keep the Red Lion. Not to mention that without it, we cannot open the gates to provide Shiro with the Black Lion. We must retrieve it, with or without a paladin.” Allura insisted.

“How will we do that? You said that each lion has to choose its paladin. They won’t even lower their shields until they find it.” Hunk added, the rest nodding in agreement.

“Hunk has a point. How will we get the lion to even let us in?” Pidge asked.

“That will have to be a plan to make up as we go. The enemy ship is currently passing by a nearby Galaxy. If we do not take the chance now, we will possibly lose it to the Central Command. Once its there, it will be impossible to retrieve.” Allura explained as she crossed her arms.

Coran hummed. “I think we should send Lance to retrieve the Red Lion.”

“…wait, what?” Lance asked, blinking. “Did I hear you right? You do realize I’m the pilot for Blue, right?”

“Yes, but such as the Blue Lion is the most accepting of all lions, maybe your personality will attract the pity of the Red Lion enough to let you in!” Coran said cheerfully. Lance could not believe this.

“What if it doesn’t work?!” Lance asked.

“You’ll have the rest of the paladins you back you up. Sadly, we do not have much time to waste. We must catch it before it decides to enter into a Hyperspace Jump into another galaxy.” Allura said as she began to type into her advanced technology of the castle. From a wall nearby, a door opened up, showing the room with the paladin suits inside, along with their bayards. They all looked up in awe, things only getting better and better by the second. Even Lance felt excited, despite knowing that he was going to be absolutely screwed in his first, and maybe even last mission as the blue paladin. Darn it. Couldn’t he get a break?

“Suit up, paladins.” Allura smiled. “You’re off to retrieve the Red Lion.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'll see you guys next time


	3. Galra Pilot

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Lance ends up meeting a peculiar Galra while trying to steal the Red Lion. Things are only getting wilder from here.

**“ARRIVING IN THREE TICKS. PLEASE STEP AWAY FROM THE DOOR.”**

The doors of a Galra transport ship opened up, revealing a group of Galra soldiers in uniform. They all began to step off into the platform, Keith among them. Endless chatter between soldiers and sentinels alike, ships leaving and ships arriving, all small in size compared to the one they were in currently, carrying everything from supplies to soldiers and students like himself.

“Alright, everyone stick together now! The quicker you get set on your duties, the quicker you can be allowed to explore.” The Galra commander said, smiling down at the group of young Galra, all standing in formation all too eager to continue their training as part of the Galra military. “Follow me.” And with that, the commander signaled the small group to follow him over, leading him into the hallways of the large ship. It wasn’t the first time Keith was in such ship. He had come here a couple times before, with his father, with his class group, and in other occasions. But in every single one, there was one and only thing that kept him coming back; the Red Lion.

The first time he saw it, he was much younger, holding his father’s hand. It was the biggest ship he had ever seen, so brightly colored, and utterly beautiful, even the force field that surrounded it. The first time, he swore that the Lion purred to him, something that his father and others laughed off as a child’s imagination. But it never went away. As he grew, even in his dreams it seemed to haunt him. The image of the grand Red Lion, looking ever so alive and glaring down at him. Even now, as he walked down the hall, he could hear him again. Purring. Whispering. He has always been there, ever since that day, and every time he stepped foot on this ship, it felt as if the Lion could come to life at any moment.

Well, he wasn’t wrong.

…

_“Alright, Paladins, here is the plan. We can only keep the wormhole open for one hour, so you have that much time to sneak onboard of the ship and steal the red lion. Hunk will create a distraction while Pidge, Lance and Shiro board the ship. Hopefully the Red Lion might consider Lance as a possible pilot of their quintensense are at least similar in some way. Him or Shiro.”_

“What if neither of us are allowed to pilot the Lion?”

_“…Well then that would certainly be pessimistic, wouldn’t it?”_

Coran’s words echoed in Lance’s head, following Shiro inside the ship while Pidge was behind. Sneaking into an alien ship was definitely something he didn’t expect he would find himself doing, and yet, it brought him to wonder if any of this was coincidence at all, or some kind of sick joke from whatever or whoever was in charge of his destiny.

He always knew his family was different. That they weren’t from the Earth that they called home. One of the reasons for him to becoming a pilot of the Galaxy garrison was to gain a chance to learn more of the universe beyond his world. To travel to new planets and discover new beings, and maybe, ust maybe, discover the origins of who he was, what he was, and where he had come from. But never in his wildest dreams did he thought it would all take him to this.

“…Lance, are you listening?”

Lance blinked, looking up at his friends. “Huh? Oh yeah. Totally…repeat?”

“We are going to free any prisoners trapped within this ship. You should get to the Red Lion and get it out of here.” Shiro said. “Understood?”

“Yeah.” Lance said, though there was a doubt in there. “Wait, what happens if I need help? Or the Lion doesn’t open for me?!”

“You’ll figure it out. You can call on us if you get in trouble!” Pidge insisted, and just like that, the two disappeared within the labyrinth that was the Galra ship, their footsteps fading away until he couldn’t hear them anymore. He sighed, turning to his helmet.

“Allura, Coran…a little help here?”

_“On our way.”_

…

“I’m almost there.” Keith spoke, his eyes gleaming up at the Red Lion, covered in its red protective shield. The hues of the purple lighting mixed with the red made it seemed ever so mystical and mysterious, yet a warmth of familiarity still remained.

“Just a few more months and I should be promoted to a Military Pilot. The professor even told me that I might get my own ship and everything! Dad said that he would get me something special for my promotion. Everything’s going so great and yet…” Keith’s face softened. “Why do I feel so wrong?” Everything was being accomplished, he was at the top of his class, a prodigy, and overall, had a bright future ahead of him, with everyone who knew him proud and red with envy at everything he had, and yet…he felt like something was missing. Something was wrong. He was doing something wrong, and he had no idea what. “Is it your doing?”

He received no response, but instead was jolted upwards by the blaring sound of an alarm.

**“WE ARE UNDER ATTACK. I REPEAT. WE ARE UNDER ATTACK. EVERYONE TO THEIR ATTACK POSITIONS.”**

“Attacked?...by who?” Keith gasped, turning his head to the doors. The sound of footsteps and grunting noises caught his attention. Someone was coming. Not knowing whether it was friend or foe, he quickly looked for a place to hide, finding it behind a bunch of stacked up cargo boxes in a corner. He caught his breath, keeping quiet as he heard the footsteps get closer, and the door opening up.

“Allura, I found it!”

Keith looked up, taking a peek at the person at hand. He was obviously the enemy, wearing an armor of white and red, a contrast to what he was used to seeing among his kind.

“Intruder.” Keith whispered, looking down at the laser gun on his hip, and gently getting it ready for use.

“Alright, open up buddy!” Lance yelled, staring up at the Red Lion. “It’s me! Lance! The Blue Paladin to your buddy, the Blue Lion! We came to get you out of here!” Lance yelled, hoping that would do something to get the lion stirring.

Nothing.

“Come on.” Lance groaned. “I know I’m not your paladin but we’ll find you one! But we have to find a way to get you out of here!” Still nothing. Lance gently rubbed his temples. He knew this was a bad idea. Well this was starting to suck. “Listen to me-!” Lance began again, hoping to come up with anything that would get the lion to at least lower its shield. However, he stopped himself short, feeling the cold barrel of a gun pressed against the back of his head.

“Turn around slowly.” Keith hissed, pressing the gun further. “No funny movements.”

Lance would have cracked a joke were he not in the situation he was. He slowly raised his arms into the air, turning around to face the Galra soldier behind him. Purple skin, much more humanoid features than what he had been shown, bright yellow eyes and big ears much like that of a cat…was that a mullet he was styling? Oh he definitely had to make a note about that later on.

Keith had never seen his kind before. He had the most gorgeous blue eyes which contrasted against his tanned skin, blue markings just as bright underneath them. He was by all accounts handsome...but an enemy no less.

“What do you think you’re doing? What are you trying to do with the Red Lion?” Keith asked.

“What does it look like?” Lance spat. “Taking it away from you and your so called Empire!”

“Are you insane?” Keith couldn’t believe his ears. “Why would you even try that?”

“To form Voltron, obviously.” Lance glared. “And when we do, we’re going to beat your Empire to the fucking ground.”

Keith paused at the name. Voltron. Of course, he knew what it was. It was a myth, a legend told to children before going to sleep. The most powerful weapon ever created, composed of five colored lions lost to existence. One of them being the one and only Red Lion that sat before them.

“Vol...tron? You’re…trying to form Voltron?” Keith asked, rather complexed at the idea. Lance took the chance, the Galra had let his Guard down. He swung his arm against Keith’s, forming his bayard as it transformed into his gun, slamming it hard against Keith’s arm, knocking the gun out of Keith’s hand, sending it flying to the side. He aimed at Keith, shooting at him. However Keith was quick to react, his reflexes as impressive as ever, dodging the beams with incredible speed, before dashing at Lance, tackling him down into the ground. The two struggled for power, not only of themselves, but of the blue paladin’s bayard, all hands trying to point it against one another.

“What do you think you’re doing?!”

“Kicking your ass!” Lance headbutted Keith hard, their foreheads colliding. Both parties felt the pain, groaning loudly. Lance aimed again, shooting, before Keith grabbed him by the wrist and knocked the bayard out of his hand. The two struggled grunting as they tried to pin each other down.

“What do you think you’re doing with all of this?!”

“What do you think I’m doing?! Have you taken a look at yourself?!” Lance bared his teeth, his eyes filled with hatred. “What you have done to others?! To the other Planets?! To _my_ people?!”

“What are you talking about? We’re expanding the empire, there’s nothing wrong with-!”

“You’re committing **GENOCIDE**!”

Suddenly a loud growl. Both of their heads snapped towards the source, the Red Lion, which now stood on its fours as its shield disappeared. Keith watched in awe, watching as its yellow eyes began to glow, the mechanical being coming to life. Lance took the chance, punching Keith off him before hurrying to get his bayard. Keith groaned, feeling his cheek as he looked up at Lance.

“Wait-!” Keith didn’t get very far, his attention once again taken by the Red Lion. He turned to face it again, and watched it let out one big, loud, ground shaking roar. Keith watched in awe, his knees trembling at the power of it all. Yet even then, he could hear the words that the Lion meant for him. The images that began to flash through his mind. It was like dreaming all over again. Only that this time it was real. It was ever so real. Keith lowered his arms, staring up at the lion with his jaw dropped.

“…it’s real after all…?”

 _“Lance! Where are you?!”_ Shiro asked through his helmet. Lance stood up.

“Here with the Red Lion.”

_“We have less than ten minutes until the Wormhole closes. We’re leaving in Pidge’s lion!”_

_“Guys I think I need to back off too! I don’t think I can keep it up any longer!”_ Hunk called, his panicked voice screeching on the other side of the communication end.

“Alright. I’ll follow right behind.” Lance assured, hurrying over to the Red Lion. “Sorry mullet, but I have to go, and the Lion’s coming with me.” Lance said. However, he was stopped as Keith quickly caught him, wrapping his hand around his wrist.

“Wait!” Keith said, quickly coming to his senses, getting up on his feet. “Let me come with you!”

“…what?! Why would I do that?!”

“For one, the Lion won’t respond to you, but it will to me!”

“You think I- Wait, he responds to you?!”

“Yes. It always has!”

A pause.

“…I don’t know-“ A growl from the Red Lion eventually convinced him otherwise. Besides, they were running out of time. “…fine. Let’s hurry then.” Lance said, dragging Keith to the lion as it opened it up its chest for the two. Keith reached to the entrance, and yet just about to enter into the lion, he got cold feet, stopping on his tracks.

What was he doing? He was just about to enter the Red Lion ship, with an intruder, and steal it with him to…form Voltron with the enemies? It was wrong. He knew it was wrong. But…it didn’t felt that way regardless.

“There!” A voice yelled, causing Keith to turn his head. Sentries and soldiers ran into the room.

“The Red Lion!”

“Stop them!”

Before Keith could speak, Lance grabbed him by the uniform, pulling him back and throwing him inside of the lion, allowing it to close its entrance just as they began to fire. Inside Lance and Keith scrambled over to the controls, Keith taking a seat as everything around him began to glow red.

“I’ve never seen anything like this before.” Keith whispered, his eyes drawn to the screen as it showed the hangar before them, including the soldiers he just a few ticks ago called friends.

“Can you pilot it?” Lance asked. Keith paused, moving his hands on the gear shifts, feeling the warmth of the lion, hearing it purr all around him, welcoming him as if he had been gone and had finally returned to where he had originally belonged. Keith smirked, adrenaline pumping.

“Yes I can.”

With that, Keith pushed forward, the lion screeching as it aimed down at the floor, shooting a beam of magma right on it, causing the floor itself to melt away, and creating the perfect exit for the lion. They jumped out flying out into space, and out of the ship, Lance hanging onto the chair for dear life.

“Lance, two minutes!” Allura reminded him.

“We’re on it!” Lance yelled, looking at Keith and pointing at the wormhole. “There mullet!”

“My name’s not mullet! It’s Keith!”

“Well then, Keith, THERE!”

Keith didn’t hesitate, expertly maneuvering across the crossfire, and flying right through the wormhole just behind the rest of the paladins. It closed right behind them, leaving nothing behind for the Galra.

 _“Whoo-hoo! We did it!”_ Pidge cheered, smiling in her seat.

 _“Heck yeah we did! Lance, how did you manage to get the lion?”_ Hunk asked.

“Huh.” Lance gulped, looking down at the Galra that drove the Red Lion. “Well…it’s not me who’s piloting it.”

 _“…what do you mean?”_ Coran’s voice spoke up, a hint of confusion. Lance sighed. Oh he was going to regret this.

“The one piloting the Lion might be…a Galra.”

_**“…WHAT?!”** _


	4. Keith Kogane

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The team welcomes the Red Lion's chosen one, willingly or not.

The severity of everything that had just happened didn’t exactly kick in for Keith until the Red Lion had landed inside the Castle of Lions. As the adrenaline slowly disappeared, reality seemed to hit him like a truck once he realized it.

_What the hell did he just do?_

He had not only conspired with the enemy, he had also stolen one of the Galra’s most precious properties, gone against the rules of the empire,  **AND** quite literally delivered the ever so precious Red Lion right into the enemy’s doorstep. Well, shit. There went his entire life’s work down the drain. Panic would have set in up and foremost, but instead of panic all he felt was annoyance, especially with the Blue Paladin yelling at him about something he couldn’t pay enough attention to remember. Once Lance decided to step out of the Red Lion, Keith was given a few minutes to realize what had conspired in a matter of an hour or less.

“Oh my god.” Keith whispered, cursing under his breath. He heard the Red Lion purr, bringing some sort of comfort to the ever so nervous Galra. He was alive, but damn, for how much longer? He stood on his feet, following as he stepped out of the Red Lion and into what he had always considered to be enemy territory. Things only got more hectic from there.

The rest of the paladins arrived, along with two others who seemed to be of the same species as Lance was. Pidge already had her bayard ready to go, Shiro’s arm glowing a bright purple, Lance trying to explain something to Allura as Coran seemed to get into a fighting position in front of Keith. The whole chaos only came to a halt when the Red Lion behind them let out a thundering roar, causing everyone to quiet down. For the first few moments, it was an awkward silence, the only sound being the humming wavering off Shiro’s weapon. Coran was the first to speak.

“So...I’m guessing this is the Galra you spoke about, Lance.” Coran asked.

“Yes.” Lance said, a hint of regret in his voice as he eyed over to Keith.

“I see.” Coran said, looking over at the princess and then back at the Red Lion. “Well, it appears that…the Red Lion does indeed have chosen to respond to him. Princess?”

Allura paused, glancing back and forth from Keith to the Red Lion. Part of her screamed to believe her eyes, to try and fight the Galra that had dared to venture into her ship, but her conscious spoke louder, bringing reason forth before anything else. There was no denying the connection she sensed. The Red Lion had chosen its paladin…and it was none other than the Galra, as much as she hated to admit so.

“…yes. The connection is there, and there is no denying it.” Allura said, taking a pause to calm herself before continuing. “The Red Lion…seems to have chosen this soldier as its paladin.”

“No way!” Pidge yelled, the first to protest. “This can’t be it! He’s the enemy!”

“I have to agree with Pidge on this one. We have just come to terms that the Galra are the enemy and now we have to work with one?” Hunk added, fustruation in his voice.

“Princess, there has to be some…mistake.” Shiro spoke, his eyes glaring at Keith before diverting themselves away.

“There is none.” Allura said, a sigh escaping her lips. “The Red Lion has chosen him as his paladin, and there is nothing we can do.”

“No way!” Lance said, taking off his helmet and glaring at Keith. “There’s no way I’m working with him!” Keith couldn’t help it, finally breaking his silence.

“Well it’s not like I want to be here either!” Keith hissed, glaring at the group around him. “…listen, I didn’t plan any of this. The fact that I even got into the lion was more on impulse than anything else.” Keith admitted, glancing back at the Red Lion. “He…he showed me things. About the other lions, and about Voltron, I only got in because…” Keith paused. “…fuck I don’t even know.” Keith hissed, holding his head. This was beyond frustrating. He just wanted to go home. To go back. To start over from this morning. Anything but here.

“Well we could always just let him go back on his merry way.” Pidge suggested.

“No.” Allura spoke, her tone stern as she glanced at Keith. “He is a Paladin of Voltron, and despite our own judgement, the Red Lion trusts him…so we must also.” Allura insisted, much to everyone’s dismay. “May I ask for your name?”

“…Keith. The name’s Keith.” Keith said, crossing his arms.

“Keith. Right. Do you know of the Paladins of Voltron?” Allura asked, offering her hand to him. Keith stared down at her, glancing around him for a few moments, before walking over and gently taking her hand. He was at their mercy now. The least he could do is to watch and learn.

…

“…does it make sense to you?” Coran asked. They all sat in the common room, sitting around lazily, yet all similarly far away from Keith.

“It does…kind of.” Keith spoke, shrugging his shoulders. Giant robot. Giant cats. War. Paladins. This was certainly less kid friendly than the fairy tale he had always been told. “But I do not want part of it.”

“What?” Coran asked, bewildered.

“I understand about the whole lions and paladins and all that…but you can’t just ask me to pilot these things against my own.” Keith spoke. Yes, he was in an enemy ship, but that didn’t mean that they were right. The Galra Empire was simply expanding, gaining territory for itself and its citizens through fair military warfare, as it had been done countless times before. “If you guys want to cause a vendetta go right ahead. But I’m returning home.” Keith insisted. He was going to leave it at that, but Lance’s scoff changed it.

“Let him leave!” Lance insisted. “Monsters belong with monsters, anyways.”

“Excuse you,” Keith hissed. “You shouldn’t be so sour just because you are a sore loser at something as simple as war.”

“War?” Lance’s tone darkened, now sitting straight. “You call mass genocide war? Mass extinction war?!”

Keith bit his tongue. Lance’s horrid accusations didn’t sound...impossible. Things happened in war. They always did. But the Galra empire had its right to expand and further the progress of the empire. It has always been that way. It has always been that way.

“…things happen in the name of expansion.” Keith murmured, repeating the words that he had heard so many times before as he was taught of the history of his kind.

Lance’s eyes twitches. “Why I ought-!”

“Enough.” Allura spoke. She took a deep breath, crossing her arms. “Keith has been raised within the empire. It is normal for him to defend the only place he has ever known.” Allura explained, glancing over at Keith, who didn’t seem very convinced. “Keith.” She began, stepping closer. “Please give us a week. At the very least, a week. The Red Lion chose you for a reason. Don’t you want to know what that reason might be?” Allura asked, hoping to convince Keith to stay. Once the Lion had chosen a paladin, they wouldn’t let them go, and finding any kind of replacement was just as difficult.

Keith looked at Allura, turning away as he began to think. Why should he stay? They were the enemy! Beings against the Galra Empire who were not shy to demonstrate their hatred and desire to see it fall. If anything he should have ran off back home with the Red Lion, explain what he had seen, and everything would return to normal. However, with all of these thoughts, his mind always went back to the Red Lion itself. The warm encouraging purrs, the way it insisted back at the hangar for Lance to be ally, not enemy. The way it led him straight to the castle’s hangar, sharing a sense of familiarity that Keith couldn’t explain. All the way through, despite this being the enemy’s place, he felt safe. He felt at home. That is what the Red Lion felt and shared…and Keith wanted to believe it.

“Ugh,” Keith bit his tongue. “…fine. One week.” Keith said, signaling the number with his finger. “But if I don’t see any reason, I’m out of here.” He insisted. Allura and Coran nodded, everyone else letting out sighs of all kinds.

This would be a long week.

…

“Have you scanned the sector?!”

“We have! The Red Lion is nowhere to be found on the radar!”

“Scan it AGAIN!”

Across the solar systems, Galra ships were working on the clock. The Red Lion had been stolen a few hours ago, and the events unfolding its robbery travelled across the communication lines like wildfire. Within hours almost everyone in the entire Galra Empire had heard that the Red Lion was stolen, along with one of its most talented pilots, and the rumor continued to spread. Though the story varied on who you asked, it was always the same. The Red Lion and Keith were gone. The ships scanned their own solar systems, trying to find the location of the lion if it happened to be in their system. So far, they were coming up empty.

With no surprise the news reached Zarkon’s central command rather quickly. But it also meant that it had reached Thace as well.

“What?!” Thace yelled, gasping at his own tone. He stood in the throne room, Zarkon sitting on his throne as Haggar stood by him. Other generals were there as well. One soldier kneeling down as he repeated the news.

“The Red Lion has been stolen…and Keith Kogane was on it.” The soldier repeated. Thace looked so pale he looked like he could pass out at any moment. One of the other generals had to get a hand on his shoulder to make sure he wouldn’t do so.

“I see. That is…unfortunate.” Zarkon spoke, his tone calm as he crossed his hands together. “Was the Galra Soldier piloting the lion?”

“We do not know, sir. There was an intruder. There is a possibility that the intruder might have taken Keith as hostage, or maybe collateral.” The soldier added. This didn’t make Thace feel any better. Where was his son, and was he alright? That’s all he wanted to know.

“Very well. Send in the full report once it is done.” Zarkon ordered. The soldier bowed his head and quickly left the room. Thace remained in a state of worry, his figure shaking slightly as his mouth felt dry.

“Thace.” Zarkon spoke, his voice bringing Thace out of his thoughts. Thace gulped, his breath shaky.

“Keith…Keith is my son, lord Zarkon.” Thace explained, receiving looks of empathy from his fellow soldiers. Zarkon hummed softly.

“I see.” He said, standing up. “I have heard his name before. He is quite the pilot.” Zarkon walked over, never gazing away from Thace as he placed a firm grip on Thace’s shoulder. “With his skills, I am sure he will be fine.” Zarkon said. Thace couldn’t tell if Zarkon even pitied him. His voice was always so cold, his expressions unchanging.

“…yes, lord Zarkon…I hope so too.”

…

The castle was incredible. Keith admitted that much. The technology was so similar, and yet it felt so different. Maybe it was the color scheme. He had been given a room to call his own. They would start training tomorrow, the princess said. They needed some time to refurbish and fix out any bugs in the system after ten thousand years of sleep. Keith didn’t know what to expect.

He couldn’t sleep. Too much on his mind to simply fall asleep on a strange bed in a strange room in a strange castle. He decided to walk around instead, hoping to memorize routes of the castle and tire himself out. The purr of the Red Lion sounded ever so close, and warmer than ever before. He found himself walking into one of the living areas, large windows demonstrating the beautiful landscape of the planet and the endless stars in the sky. For a second he didn’t notice the man known as Shiro standing by the windows.

“You’re awake too.” Keith spoke. It seemed to startle Shiro, because his prosthetic arm quickly began to glow a purple hue. Keith raised his hands. “I didn’t mean to startle you.”

“Oh.” Shiro blinked, looking away. He couldn’t even look at Keith directly in the eye. How could he? The bright yellow eyes standing out in the dark bringing memories too painful to bear. “Sorry, Keith.” Shiro whispered, though the arm did not seize in its glowing.

Keith recognized such technology. It was obviously Galra. The purple hue itself was a big clue on its own.

“Your arm.” Keith began, clearing his throat. “It’s…Galra, right?”

“Um…yeah.” Shiro answered, still looking to the ground.

“How did you lose your arm?”

“I don’t remember.”

“…how come?” Keith took a step closer.

“I just don’t.”

“Was it-“ Keith reached a hand out. Shiro’s reflexes were quick, grabbing Keith’s arm and pulling it away as he brought the Galra prosthetic closer, using it to point at Keith. Keith paused, gulping slightly as he raised his other arm. “I…mean no harm.”

Shiro blinked a few times. “…right.” Shiro said, quickly letting go of him and taking a step back. “Sorry, it’s just that…well…you-“

“That I’m Galra?”

Silence.

Keith bit his bottom lip. “…why do you hate my kind so much? What did we do to you?”

Shiro didn’t mean to scoff, but it escaped his lips regardless. He glanced up at Keith, who seemed as confused as ever. Shiro shook his head. “What didn’t they do to me?” He muttered. It sounded more sarcastic than he expected. He extended his prosthetic and ever so gently felt the scar on his face. “I can’t remember everything. I can’t remember all that happened to me. But I do remember the Galra. I do remember them taking my friends and I away from our solar system and on-board a ship that would become our prison.” Shiro explained. He looked up at Keith, but not with anger, but instead with pity.

“I remember the pain that they caused me though experimentation…and the pain I suffered as I was forced to fight in the arena.”

Keith held his breath, feeling a sharp pain in his chest as he listened to Shiro. The man himself, upon closer inspection, seemed like he had been through hell and back. His scar, his prosthetic, the mention of the arena quickly sent goosebumps down Keith’s spine. As far as he was told, as far as everyone was told, the fighters of the arena were volunteers. Species from other planets who came to fight to claim their worth as fighters in the eyes of the Galra Empire that they served under.

“Oh.” Was all Keith could muster out. His mind was running in circles. If this was true, what more was he wrong about? “I…I’m sorry.” Keith blinked a few times, looking out the window, thinking of what to say. If he could say anything at all. “…I think I remember you. The Champion.” Shiro winced at the nickname. Keith chuckled breathlessly. “…I watched you fight once last year…I wonder what made you so strong.” He paused, biting his bottom lip. “I didn’t think that…well…that the Empire would…I mean…” Keith couldn’t even comprehend it. He didn’t know what to say. His throat hurt, along with his chest and head.

“You are blind.” Shiro said. “Growing up like you did does that. But…I hope that within the week, if you truly are a paladin of Voltron.” He looked over at Keith with gentle eyes. “That we will be able to help you to finally open your eyes.”

Keith didn’t know how to respond to that. Even as he searched for the words, his throat tightened, and in response all he could do was nod. They stood in silence, standing in the dark as they simply stared out the window. Shiro eventually retreated to his room, but Keith remained. His mind now full, unraveling and trying to piece itself together against everything he had grown up with. His father’s words echoed again, bringing some comfort, though minimal.

_“Maybe the day is soon…where I will finally understand?”_


End file.
